Pu’er City is in the south central part of Yunnan Province. Often referred to as China's Tea Capital, Puer is probably best known as the source of Pu'erh tea, a dark, fermented style of tea that is one of the most prized kinds of Chinese tea. Pu’er City is one of the highest producing areas of Pu'er tea today. Pu’er is a good place to visit to experience Chinese tea culture in its most concentrated and pure form.
Puer has been a major center of tea trade since the time of the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907). In ancient times the tea was carried by local horse caravans to Lhasa to trade it for other kinds of goods, such as medicinal supplies, horses or furs. That was what gave rise to the fabled Ancient Tea Horse Road.
Travelers can learn all about how to make, taste and properly drink Pu’er tea at The Pu’er Tea Expo Park, which is about 29 kilometers (18 miles) from the urban center of Pu’er.
The Ancient Tea Horse Road comes to life in Bixi Ancient Town, which was an important post station on the route. All the history and culture that Pu’er absorb during past millennia still speaks from the ancient cobblestones and houses in Pu’er.
Pu’er is also the home of many ethnic minorities, each of which has their own unique cultures and styles of traditional clothing and cuisine.
Beyond the urban center of Pu’er, there is Awa Mountain in Ximeng County, a scene of incomparable beauty, where the mountain tops are often bathed in sea clouds and mist in winter and spring. When the clouds disperse, they unveil the quaint bamboo houses in the villages, vast terraced fields and Musa trees on the mountainsides.
Among the many attractions of Pu’er is Pu'er National Forest Park, a wildlife preserve in a transitional zone between tropical and subtropical climate zones. It provides an opportunity for breathtaking close encounters with charismatic wildlife of the region, including the rhinocerous, golden eagle, red panda, monkeys and foxes.
The Tropic of Cancer Marker Park brings together sciences of geography, astronomy and botany with architecture, landscape art and culture. Fascinating and educational exhibits are positioned in various places throughout the park.
The China Pu’er Tea Exhibition Garden is an eco-friendly tea farm that presents all aspects of Pu’er Tea, including its origin and development, planting and production, processing and packaging, history and culture, collection and marketing, and cooking and tasting.
